Watermarking and fingerprinting digital content using alternative blocks to embed information

• US 8,189,854 B2
• Filed: 02/16/2007
• Issued: 05/29/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 07/09/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Kaleidescape Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Kaleidescape Incorporated
• Inventors: Watson, Stephen, Collens, Daniel A., Hui, Kevin, Malcolm, Michael A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Kassa, Yosef
• Application Number:
  US11/707,634
• Publication Number:
  US 20070242862A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,929 Days
• Field of Search: 382/100, 382/232, 382/240, 713/176, 713/179
• US Class Current: 382/100
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 1/0035 Output size adaptive watermarking
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32165 using cosine transforms
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32187 with selective or adaptive application of the additional information, e.g. in selected frequency coefficients
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32277 Compression
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/467 characterised by the embedded information being invisible, e.g. watermarking
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2383 Channel coding or modulation of digital bit-stream, e.g. QPSK modulation arrangements for detecting or preventing errors in the information received by adapting the channel coding H04L1/0009; analogue front ends or means for connecting modulators, demodulators or transceivers to a transmission line H04L27/0002
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23892 involving embedding information at multiplex stream level, e.g. embedding a watermark at packet level
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4348 Demultiplexing of additional data and video streams
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8358 involving watermark protecting executable software by watermarking G06F21/16; image watermarking in general G06T1/0021; watermarks inserted in still images for transmission purposes H04N1/32144; inserting watermarks during video coding H04N19/467
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/324 Selecting a particular authentication information from amongst a plurality of different authentication information

Abstract

A method of embedding information in digital content representing media streams. The method includes (1) selecting a set of locations within that digital content representing the media stream to embed information, (2) selecting a set of possible alterations to make at those locations, and (3) making a subset of the possible alterations. The set of locations and possible alterations is herein sometimes called a “watermark.” The subset of actual alterations that are made is herein sometimes called a “fingerprint.” The method determines a set of locations at which there are alternative versions of digital content representing the same media stream, such as one being the original and one being an alternative version of the same digital content, herein sometimes called the “original movie” and the “alt-movie,” or herein sometimes called the “original block” and the “alt-block” for a particular block in the digital content representing the media stream.

Claims

1. A method of presentation of digital content comprising:

selecting among more than one possible set of presentation possibilities in a media stream;

wherein said selection includes more than zero markers indicating possible choices among more than one possible presentation, with the possible choices if made individually possibly not preserving packetization, but with the possible choices collectively preserving packetization of the digital content,

wherein the method is performed by one or more computing devices.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the more than zero markers indicating choices among more than one possible presentation include at least one alteration that individually would change the length of a packet.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the selection among more than one possible presentation is at selected locations including blocks in which data can be embedded, and wherein at least one such block includes at least two such possible alterations.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein each of the possible choices, when applied to a presentable block, selects an equivalent block length for the presentable block.

5. The method of claim 1 including providing a complete or partial fingerprint including information representing actual choices selected for more than zero of the selected locations.

6. The method of claim 4 wherein the selections among more than one possible presentation are made at a plurality of different client, server, or cache devices.

7. A method of generating fingerprinted digital content, comprising:

determining a set of encoded blocks within encoded digital content where data may be embedded;

identifying a plurality of possible alt-blocks, each of said plurality of possible alt-blocks associated with an encoded block from said set of encoded blocks, wherein each possible alt-block comprises a plurality of alterations in variable length codes (VLCs) of an associated encoded block, wherein a first alteration results in a change in bit-length of an associated VLC, and wherein said possible alt-block comprises a bit-length equal to said encoded block; and

embedding a fingerprint in said digital content by selecting a first subset of alt-blocks from said plurality of possible alt-blocks, and inserting said first subset of alt-blocks into said digital content in place of a plurality of encoded blocks associated with said first subset of alt-blocks.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein said encoded block comprises an intra coded macroblock.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein a quantization scale of said encoded block is less than or equal to 24.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein more than one of said plurality of possible alt-blocks is associated with said encoded block.

11. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

replacing an original packet, comprising said encoded block, with an alt-packet, comprising one of the plurality of possible alt-blocks, in a data stream.

12. The method of claim 7, wherein said determining excludes a block, said block spanning packet boundaries in a packetized data stream.

13. The method of claim 7, wherein said fingerprint comprises a plurality of bits of information, each of said plurality of bits of information associated with at least one of said first subset of alt-blocks.

14. The method of claim 7, wherein said embedding further comprises embedding said fingerprint multiple times in said digital content.

15. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

embedding additional fingerprint information in said digital content by selecting a second subset of alt-blocks from said plurality of possible alt-blocks, and inserting said second subset of alt-blocks into said digital content in place of a plurality of encoded blocks associated with said second subset of alt-blocks.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein said embedding additional fingerprint information is performed at an intermediate cache location in a digital content distribution network.

17. A device for fingerprinting digital content, comprising:

a network interface over which said digital content can be sent to or received from a network;

a processor; and

a memory that stores instructions executable by said processor to fingerprint said digital content, said instructions comprising;

determining a set of encoded blocks within encoded digital content where data may be embedded;

identifying a plurality of possible alterations, each of said plurality of possible alterations associated with a location from a set of locations, wherein each possible alteration comprises a plurality of alterations at an associated location, wherein a first alteration results in a change in a length of said associated location, and wherein said plurality of alterations results in said possible alteration having said length equal to said associated location; and

embedding a fingerprint in said digital content by selecting a subset of possible alterations from said plurality of possible alterations, and inserting said subset of alterations into said digital content in place of a plurality of locations associated with said subset of alterations.

18. The device of claim 17, wherein said device is an injection point for a distribution network for the digital content.

19. The device of claim 17, wherein said embedding is performed at one or more of the following locations:

different client;

server; and

cache devices.

20. The method of claim 17, wherein the digital content is MPEG encoded.